Return My Heart
by Sarahbeth Lazic - Author
Summary: Yoshiko thought her world had finally settled and her heart healed, but then a note turned her life around, and she came face to face with the young man she had loved many years ago - Haku. Suzume was caught, trapped between threats and love. In order to keep Zabuza with her, she had to hand over her sister - to death. Can love win? Or will their hearts be broken. (Lemons)
1. The Deal

Return My Heart S. Lazic

**Return My Heart**

~ A Naruto Shippuden Fanfiction ~

Follows Lover of the Mist

**I**

(Warning: Adult / mature situations & language within story. 18+. This story and the concept are copy-righted to S. Lazic. The original concepts and characters are credited to the creator of the Naruto / Naruto Shippuden Universe. )

**S**uzume's skin itched as she glared over the candle lit table to where Kabuto Yakushi sat at the other end. As she stared at him with her black eyes, her stomach twisted in disgust. There was nothing about the man that was human any longer for her father's cells had taken over his body many months ago. What had once been a very handsome young man, was nothing more than a distant memory wrapped within a monster.

A few years ago Kabuto injected some cells from her father Orochimaru's true form into himself in hopes of incorporating his dead Master's abilities into his own genetic code. He should have known better. Within a short amount of time Orochimaru's cells began to change Kabuto. He was no longer a man but a distorted monster living in the mortal remnants of a human body.

"You're not hungry?"

A cold shudder trailed up Suzume's slender spine as Kabuto's unique voice drew ice along her flesh. Even the sound of his raspy voice caused her entire body to quiver with disgust. "No," she replied as she lowered her eyes to the plate of simple food outlined by the dancing shadows of dim candle light.

From down the long table Kabuto tipped his head, sending a trail of grey hair along a scaly cheek. His reptilian eyes narrowed behind glasses as the once deadly medical Shinobi regarded his deceased Master's eldest daughter.

Suzume Asihanaru was certainly the female equivalent to her father, the great Sannin Orochimaru. Her skin as alabaster as porcelain glowed within the flickering candle lights and her long black hair was plaited tightly down over one slender shoulder where a few stray locks skimmed the outer edges her slender, yellowish eyes that were cuddled with thick black lashes. Although she was a few years older than him, Kabuto found her extremely attractive - beautiful and as deadly as sin.

Suzume was a proud young woman whose intelligence could almost level his own. She had been the pride of his Master, and still was after Orochimaru's death. There was a sense of sophistication and royalty that Suzume possessed that had been passed to her directly from the great Sannin, and to his legend and his life, the young woman lived to honor him.

Kabuto knew that the relationship between father and daughter had been one of, shall we say, moral debauchery, and though Orochimaru had given her everything she desired, Suzume still held incredible guilt within her that she had never given him what he had desired to his heart - an heir. Yes, father and daughter had a romantic relationship. Kabuto was no fool to that and he understood why. Orochimaru wished to use his daughter to breed the perfect heir for his legacy. Suzume was his daughter and portrayed much of his genetic talents, so why not produce an heir directly from him through her so he could build his Nation?

Too bad Orochimaru had not survived long enough to make sure that his seed took root within her - yes, very sad.

That thought drew a faint snort of amusement from Kabuto.

Suzume cocked her head to the side as her yellowish eyes narrowed as she regarded the man with caution. Everything about him made her feel dirty, made her skin crawl. She took a deep breath, more like a repulsed gag, when the white head of Kabuto's mutated snake tail peeked up over the table. Those red eyes strayed as the head slithered along the tabletop towards Kabuto's plate. The very idea that the man now harbored such a mutation, and that the mutation was a full functioning and independently thinking creature, was almost too disturbing for Suzume to contemplate.

She shuddered, looking away as the 'thing' began to eat from the plate. She swallowed a lump down her throat.

"Is something wrong?"

She glanced up when she heard Kabuto's raspy voice speaking to her. "Must you feed it?" Suzume muttered as she watched Kabuto offer a morsel of meat to the snake's head.

The chuckle that came from the young man was cold, and it scratched like cat claws. He knew that Suzume viewed him as nothing but a monster now that the mutations his body had escalated to the physical development of a reptilian tale. She had been disgusted with the white scales and the fact that his eyes were now similar to those of her dead father, but the tale and the distorted body was almost too much for the young woman to handle.

What a pity. They could have such fun together.

Honestly, Kabuto thought she would be pleased that her father's cells were taking over him so quickly and that now his body had incorporated more of Orochimaru's reptilian style than even the Sannin's own body. Kabuto had even harbored some hope that the changes in his physical appearance and his physical strength would have drawn Suzume closer to him, after all, Kabuto deserved her.

With all that he had done for Orochimaru over his entire life serving the Sannin, he deserved some form of formal payment, so why not take his Master's daughter? He would give her anything she could desire, and more than Orochimaru could. Kabuto would see to that. Suzume would be happy with him. They could rebuild Orochimaru's dream of having an entire clan of deadly Shinobi that would grow and strengthen, so that eventually, Orochimaru's desire to crush the Hidden Leaf Village could finally come to fruition.

Isn't that what Suzume desired? After all, she lived to see her father's dreams come to light, and was devastated to point that consoling her was impossible when Sasuke Uchiha took Orochimaru's life.

Kabuto could still hear the sounds of Suzume's soul wrenching sobs echoing the dark and empty corridors of this underground compound, night after night. His heart ached that she still held a shadow of pain and suffering, and there was a part of him that wished to console her, embrace her and try to show her just how much _he _needed her, but Suzume would always be blind to his love for her, and had been for many years.

Even within the dim lights of the candles stretching along the table, Kabuto could see the beauty that was Orochimaru's daughter. He loved her hair braided, yet he dreamed of the moment when he could run his hands through the silken strands of ebony. He dreamed of her naked upon his bed, moving upon him in dancing sways of slick skin. Dreams were dreams, and for the most part would remain within his dream world.

The way her maroon and silver dress hugged her body in a caress of satin, as if it were second skin, had his own flesh burning with desire. Her body was sleek, from years of training, yet held a set of curves that any woman would kill to have. He knew how short her skirt was and could only imagine slipping his hands up along her bare thighs, pleasing his fingers with the silken texture of her skin. And then there were her breasts, held so tight and nearly exposed by the tight corset pained Kabuto's body with lust. It seemed the firm mounds were calling to Kabuto, begging him to pin her down and…

A disgusted growl, echoing from down the table, drew a slight smile upon his pale lips. The head of the snake tail rose up, flicking its forked tongue towards its Master. Kabuto chuckled, giving a stroke down the scaly head before he turned his reptilian eyes towards the beauty of his life to regard her with a calculating gaze. With a mental bidding, the tail slithered back beneath the table.

"You should eat," he suggested as he raised another slice of braised ox tail to his lips.

Suzume narrowed her eyes dangerously towards him. Was he joking? He could he expect her to eat? She never ate when he requested her presence for a dinner. She only agreed to this evening's meal with him so that they could discuss any ongoing matters that regarded her father's ambitions - nothing more. Kabuto was a man Suzume could not trust, would never trust. True, her father could not be trusted by anyone either, but he was trusted by her and her younger sister, Yoshiko. Orochimaru was their father. Kabuto was simply one of his greatest pawns, the little fool.

"I'm not hungry," she replied to him with a snip to her voice.

Kabuto sighed. Of course, she had lost her appetite. Oh well. "There is something I wish to discuss with you, Suzume," he said calmly as he reached for his glass of wine, a drink of pleasure he often enjoyed.

"Oh? And what is that?" she asked in return with a slender brow arching over her features.

"The war I will be waging against the great Shinobi nations will soon begin, and your father's dream will finally be realized."

"The dream you intend on living?" She snorted with a dark chuckle. "You've been speaking about this war since my father's death. In fact, you had tried to promote such thoughts within his mind for years before his murder. Are you sure this war is what he would have wished? The wars you had encouraged him to participate in were miserable failures. What if this war comes tumbling down on top of you? My father will not be there…"

"Suzume,' Kabuto chuckled with his cold, yet oddly sensual, voice, 'all that I had done for your father in the past was to honor what he desired to accomplish. Everything was by his hands, his vision, not mine."

"And his death?"

He sighed with a slow shake of his head. "Lord Orochimaru died years ago, Suzume, by Sasuke, not by me."

"And that little shit is still out there."

"Not for much longer." Kabuto smirked, pleased by the snarl he heard laced within her lovely voice. He tapped fingers to his wine glass before raising the cool glass to his cracked lips.

Usually Suzume would have some form of sarcastic comment ready for when he began his speeches on capturing Sasuke Uchiha, destroying the great Kages of the Shinobi Nations, then going on to take over the world, but she kept silent. There was a time when her father warned her that those who strived to take over the entire world would lose, for no single person was strong enough to do such an impossible feat. Orochimaru taught his daughters to strive for what they could accomplish first, then push their boundaries and only reach for a great goal when all the pieces fit together and when their enemies were weak.

So how did he fail?

Kabuto. That bastard had distorted her father's mind over time, swelling Orochimaru's ego till his anger over his humiliating departure from Konoha nearly drove him insane.

"My time is precious to me,' she went on to say, 'get on with it, Kabuto."

"I asked you here so that I could show you that the next step in our cause has been complete. We are closer to fulfilling your father's ambitions and goals this night."

Suzume arched a slender brow yet narrowed her eyes at the same time. "What next step? You haven't told me…"

Kabuto raised a hand, requesting silence from Suzume. Without a word, but with a cruel smile spreading upon his lips, he stood up with the rustle of his red robe. He then stepped down the table till he came to stand before her, noticing how she flinched and shifted away from him when he offered her a hand covered in white scales.

He ignored her look of disgust and said, "Come with me, and I shall show you."

Just having him near her had bile rising within Suzume's throat. Did he really expect her to touch him, to take his hand? She slid her eyes up to his features, staring at him coldly.

"Suzume…"

The tone to Kabuto's voice caressed a tremble through her, and even she was no fool to ignore the man, she knew just how powerful and dangerous he was. Turning her gaze away, Suzume scooted her chair back, the stone room echoing with the sound of wood scraping against the slate floor. When she stood, she narrowed her eyes to him.

"Show me."

Kabuto's own eyes smiled back to her. She still refused to touch him. How said. He was bonded now, forever, with her father, so if she could fall into Orochimaru's bed willingly, then she could damn well take his hand. But still she refused and gave him only a very cold shoulder.

A low growl slid from his throat. Fine, she could give him that cold shoulder and flippant attitude now, but soon, very soon, Suzume would see just how much power he had and just how far he had surpassed her beloved father. Then she would willingly give herself to him, and then they would create the next generation of great Shinobi.

He would allow Suzume to have her space - for now.

"This way then,' he said softly, then added, 'they are waiting for us."

She froze in mid step and slowly turned her widening eyes to Kabuto as he began to walk past her. "They?" Who was he speaking about? Who was _they_?

Kabuto didn't look back. He smirked as he continued to walk forwards, pausing only at the opening to the room. Only then did he glanced back ever so slightly over a shoulder to answer her. "Yes,' he told her with a crooked finger motioning her to follow him once again, 'they. Come and meet them."

Every warning bell within Suzume went off. Her skin prickled and turned icy cold as the man walked from the room. She could hear his footsteps echoing down the stone hallway as he headed away, and a shiver ran through her. She sighed heavily, bowing her head for a moment as she whispered, "Father, give me the strength not to snap his neck."

When Suzume entered a large open spaced room, she was in no way prepared for what she saw. There was a smell in the room that replaced the moldy, stale stench that was normal within the underground compound, but the smell she couldn't put a finger on directly. Whatever it the smell was, it made her stomach twist.

Kabuto moved to sit within a stone formed chair that had once been a 'throne' to her father. The fact that Kabuto dared to sit within that chair coiled a wave of anger within her that pushed away the rancid stench that buried within her nose.

She curled fingers at her sides while walking across the beautifully carved room where massive columns of carved stone rose up from floor to the arched ceiling. Most of the room was held in thick darkness but for two torches flickering wildly above the throne.

"If my father saw you sitting in that chair, he would gut you himself."

Kabuto didn't even look at her. He shifted in the seat then drew the thick hood of his cloak over his head so she couldn't see the devious grin that held his lips. He took a breath as he focused his reptilian eyes to the depths of the chamber before him.

Quietly, he raised a hand, asking her for silence. "There were many skills I learned while serving your father, Suzume, and one of those skills were many invaluable Jutsu, one of which I have finally perfect."

"Really?" Scoffing, Suzume moved to the side of the stone chair to glare down at Kabuto. She crossed her arms beneath her chest; the move causing her tightly held breasts to be pressed up even more.

Being a man, Kabuto caught that move and the lovely result of the move. He groaned inwardly, forcing his eyes to keep forwards to the room. "Yes,' he muttered, 'this jutsu that I have perfected has become greater than it was when your father had created it."

"What? What are you talking about?" she asked with a tight gasp.

"Behold,' Kabuto spoke in a voice that held pride within it, 'my personal army of immortal warriors."

Suzume winced the moment torches danced, becoming alive with dancing flames all around the columns, and when the room was bathed within soft light, she was able to turn and look out. Her breath caught in a sharp gasp as she saw, all knelt upon the stone floor, a line of forms in heavy black cloaks. They didn't move, didn't react to the lights, to Kabuto or to herself. It seemed that their heads were all bowed with deep cowls pulled over them.

Now it seemed that her mind was putting two and two together, Kabuto's mention of a jutsu that he had perfected to a greater level than her father had done and the scent that still permeated her senses. Her eyes went wide as terror slid through her heart, paralyzing her. She turned her eyes to Kabuto as her voice squeaked, "Tell me you didn't…"

Kabuto rose from the stone chair in a motion that was regal and proud. He swept an arm out with a rustle of fabric. "Behold the Impure World Resurrection Jutsu. I've perfected the Jutsu to a level that your father could never comprehend."

Suzume spun about, looking out to the line of darkly cloaked figures that continued to kneel upon the floor, motionless. By the gods, they were corpses, resurrected dead Shinobi. "Kabuto, who have you resurrected?"

Kabuto stepped down a line of shallow steps till he stood a few feet from the figures. One motion of a hand and the line stood with a rustle of fabric. "Come see for yourself."

"I'm not sure I want to," she whispered, frozen where she stood.

"They won't harm you, Suzume," he said with a sly glance back to her. "They are completely under my control."

"Who are they?"

"Shinobi who have fought and died in the past, many who fell under the blades of Konoha's finest."

For whatever reason, Kabuto's words ran a violent and frightening shudder right down her spine. She took a step forwards then stopped at the top of the steps. Her fingers curled together as she pressed her palms against her chest where her heart was starting to pound. She had a sinking feeling that there were a few faces behind the hoods that she would know.

She gulped.

"Kabuto," she whispered with fear consuming her.

One more motion from Kabuto and those who were lined before him removed their hoods. A shocked cry from behind him drew his attention, and he saw Suzume visibly shaking with a look of unbelievable terror written upon her beautiful features. Yes, that's the reaction he wanted from her. Smirking, he turned about, stepping back to her to where he came to stand at her back.

She was so stunned by what she saw before her that Suzume had not realized that he had put his hands upon her shoulders, nor had she noticed how close he was to her.

He could feel her trembling, so he leaned in to whisper with his cold breath spilling to the shell of her ear, "Do you see him, Suzume?"

She felt like sobbing, and she felt like screaming in pure anguish when she saw the pale, empty and emotionless face of her long dead lover. His name came forth in a whisper, broken and pain filled. "Za…bu…za…"

"Ah yes,' Kabuto whispered with a cold chuckle as he skimmed his fingers along her bare shoulders, taking pleasure in the one moment he had to touch her, 'you do see him. I resurrected them all, all the Shinobi that have fallen to Leaf Shinobi, particularly to Naruto Uzumaki. It so happens that your lover, Zabuza, just happens to be one that I have brought back to fight for my side."

There he was, standing in silence with black eyes focused down upon the ground. Zabuza Momochi - the once great Demon of the Hidden Mist. He looked almost the same but for pale skin, cracked in a few places, eyes that were a complete shade of inky blackness and the fact he was without his facial wrappings.

He didn't recognize her, didn't even acknowledge her and that tore a hole through Suzume's heart. It had been years since his death, and still she mourned for the man she had loved more than she loved her own father. The pain of seeing him pushed a raw howl against her lips, brought on by the desecration of her lover's eternal rest.

Kabuto felt Suzume's body tighten, so he tightened his hands upon her shoulders in a silent reminder of his presence. "I have selected them personally for their skills, their strengths and their Jutsu, many of whom have within them incredible Kekkei Genkai. I control them and their powers, and with them, I will win this coming war."

If seeing Zabuza ripped a hole within her heart, Suzume felt her soul break when her eyes set upon the blank features of Haku who stood but a few bodies down from Zabuza, and next to Haku stood Kimimaro. Tears began to skim down Suzume's cheeks as she stepped forwards without a fleeting care to her safety. She moved as if her entire body was numb and moving by simple instinct as she walked right to Zabuza.

With a shaking hand, she touched fingers to Zabuza's cold features. He didn't move, didn't even react with a blink. She looked down to Haku and then to Kimimaro, the two young men who had held her baby sister's young heart. Why? Why them?

"What have you done, Kabuto?" she whispered, slowly lowering her hand from Zabuza's cheek.

"What was needed to be done,' he told her from his position, 'and with these souls under my control, I will win."

He tipped his head then chuckled softly. "What you see is the limit to the Jutsu your father created, however, I have raised the Jutsu to a level that shall give me even greater power. These Shinobi are not just mindless bodies under my control, I can give them their identities back, their lives."

Suzume gasped and spun around looking to him. "What do you mean?"

Kabuto lowered his head where the glasses he wore shimmered from the reflection of torch light. With a grin upon his lips, he stepped forwards to join Suzume at Zabuza's side. And when he saw her eyes go wide as he produced a Kunai, marked with a special wrapping, he silenced her curiosity with a chilling smile.

"Watch."

Time slowed to Suzume as she watched him raise the kunai to Zabuza's back before he pressed the weapon forwards. She wanted to cry out, but no words came to her as she watched the blade disappear into Zabuza's back.

Kabuto stepped back and away, that icy and pleased smile growing wider as Zabuza's skin warmed and his black eyes formed a ring of crimson.

The deceased Shinobi blinked his eyes that now shown a circle of grey, slowly, as he raised his head to look about him. Cocking his head, Zabuza slid his confused eyes to the woman standing before him. "Su…zu…me?"

Suzume's black eyes went wide, and her breath caught within her throat to the horse, raspy voice that sent a caress of familiarity throughout her. Another sharp cry was silenced into her hands as she pressed her palms against her lips.

Zabuza he looked about him in a hazed, confused state. "Where…am I?" His voice was harsh and raspy as if his throat was beyond dry.

A cry broke from Suzume as she nearly fell against her dead lover. She threw her arms about his shoulders as she buried her features against the thick black cloak covering him.

Something wasn't right. Zabuza frowned when the shadowy figure tumbled against him, sobbing violently. It took a moment for his eyes to focus and for his mind to react, and when he did, he blazed his deadly hands to the woman's head, strands of her silken hair threading through his fingers. His lips turned down to a frown, and his deep and vibrating voice spoke, shadowed with confusion. "Suzume? I don't understand," he muttered hoarsely as he ran his eyes over her tear streaked features. "What is going on? Is this a dream?"

"No, Zabuza Momochi, this is no dream."

The Demon of the Hidden Mist focused his eyes towards a cloaked form standing off to the side. He narrowed his eyes to the death he felt laced within the smooth voice that had said his name. There was an undertone to that voice that had Zabuza wrapping his arms about Suzume as a low, threatening growl slid from his dry throat.

He inquired over his lover's head, "Who are you?"

Kabuto's lips curled as he saw the Shinobi's reaction, holding the woman he had loved - the woman Kabuto desired. "Who I am doesn't matter. You simply need to know that I am the man who has brought you, and the others, back to life."

Zabuza's brow creased. "I died," he muttered in reflection.

"Yes, you did,' Kabuto confirmed with a nod, 'many years ago."

Glancing down, Zabuza looked to Suzume who was sobbing against his chest. His mind was foggy and his body felt heavy, but he knew her. He would always know her. "Suzume?" He couldn't believe what was happening. One moment he was in his own hell, then suddenly he felt himself being pulled towards a stream of painful light by a powerful sensation. Then he was in nothing but inky blackness, a blackness that had felt heavy and painful, till his eyes were forced open by the command of a Jutsu.

A heavy frown fell upon Zabuza's handsome features, and he touched a cool hand to his lover's warm, living flesh. "Suzume?"

Sniffling, she looked up through tear stained eyes that were now bloodshot and red. "I didn't know what's happening. I'm so sorry…"

Kabuto snarled as he heard Suzume's sniffles and tear filled words. "Suzume! Control yourself. This sniveling is unbecoming of Orochimaru's beloved child."

Releasing the cloak, she spun around with anger, no, rage flashing within her eyes. "I will murder you for this, Kabuto!" she howled, her voice echoing violently around the stone room.

This time it was his turn to flinch when he saw reflected in the young woman's eyes the same uncontrollable rage he often saw within his Master's eyes.

"How dare you desecrate his body?" Suzume snapped, pointing back to Zabuza. "You had no right to use that damn Jutsu on him or Haku or Kimimaro!"

"Haku?" The name fell from Zabuza's lips in a slow slur as if his mind was trying to process the familiarity that the name held. His eyes shifted slowly as he turned his head from the left then to the right only to see a very familiar face staring blankly forwards.

Haku was not as he was when they were killed years ago by Kakashi Hatake, and by Zabuza's own hand. Haku did not appear as the fifteen year old boy that had fought besides him for so long. No, Haku looked to be a few years older. His innocence was gone, and Zabuza felt a momentary laceration of pain slice through his heart as the painful memory of Haku's hot blood spraying against him came to his mind, when he killed him.

"On the contrary, my dear,' Kabuto continued to speak, 'I have every right to do as I please with all of these Shinobi. They are, after all, dead to the world and many of them were buried without a care or consideration. Many were on the wrong side of the law, S-ranked criminals, while others have been long forgotten by their Nations. They are mine to use."

Whimper sickly, Suzume glanced to Haku and felt fresh tears trickle down from her eyes. "But Haku? Why him?"

Zabuza looked to her when he heard the sob that choked Suzume's voice. He saw her visibly shaking, and felt the urge to reach out to comfort her, yet he found his body unwilling to respond to him. He was being held, controlled. Narrowing his eyes, Zabuza looked to the one Suzume had called Kabuto.

"The child possesses an impressive Kekkei Genkai that I can use to my advantage in the coming war."

Suzume shook her head, trying to control her anger but even the harsh biting of her nails into her palms did little to ease her building rage. "You can't do this, Kabuto. Not with them." She raised her features with tears burning her cheeks. "Please,' she whispered, taking a few steps forwards, 'don't use them. There's no reason to. Let them rest."

Kabuto chuckled. His steps echoed as he moved with a rustle of fabric towards her. This time she didn't flinch or move when he came to stand before her. "My dear Suzume,' he said softly in that raspy voice of his as he raised a hand to touch her cheek, 'I must do everything I can in order to see your father's goals achieved. To do so, I must have powerful Shinobi by my side, and what better to have than an army of resurrected Shinobi under my complete and utter control?"

Zabuza growled when the cloaked form reached out with a white, scaly hand to touch Suzume. He saw his previous lover turn her head away as her body shivered when fingers ran along her jaw. The want to move, to rip that creature's throat out was almost too much for him to even stand, but still he could not move.

As if sensing Zabuza's anger, Kabuto glanced up over Suzume's shoulder to see the Demon of the Hidden Mist snarling towards him. "My, my,' he chortled, lowering his hand but not without letting his cold, rough fingertips grace Suzume's throat, 'it seems your previous lover still holds some sentimental value to you, Suzume. I think he's jealous."

With a gasp, Suzume looked back to Zabuza to see a cloud of murderous intent shadowing his handsome features.

A wicked grin of darkness was cast to Suzume, and Kabuto leered at her with a lewd eye. "I wonder what your lover will think when, and if, he learns that he has not been the last to share your bed."

Suzume snapped her gaze back to Kabuto with a look of horror flashing in her eyes. "No…"

"Oh yes,' snarled Kabuto as he reached up to grasp her chin in a none so gentle grip so he could tip her head up and bring her closer to him by force, 'so I suggest you listen to me and do as I say in this endeavor or I shall inform your precious Zabuza that you willing gave yourself to your own father for his personal needs. How do you think the Demon of the Hidden Mist would take that news, hmm? Would he still look at you with the same passion filled eyes as he did before his death, or do you think he would look at you with the same disgust as you look upon me with?"

He shoved her back with a rough, quick jerk of his hand. "Think on that."

It took a moment for Suzume to compose herself, but her shaking only increased. She regarded Kabuto with the greatest look of disgust and loathing. "So why show me them? Is it your intention to torture my heart for one of your sick games?"

"Of course not,' Kabuto replied calmly as he moved back towards the stone throne, 'it is the simple fact that I offer you a proposition, my dear. That is all."

"I know of your propositions,' she hissed with a voice laced in venom, 'and I have no interest in them. I don't make deals with the devil."

Kabuto grunted as he sat down then eased back into the stiff chair. "This proposition you may find too attractive to ignore."

Suzume narrowed her eyes as a knot of unease quickly tightened within her stomach. "What are you up to, Kabuto?"

The man couldn't help but gaze upon the beauty with a look of devious pride. He bent an elbow to one of the throne's stone arms then sat his cheek atop curled white fingers while tapping his other digits to the other stone arm. "I have an arrangement for you, which I offer to you only this one time. Well, it is also an offering to your sister. It is vital that Yoshiko and you agree to aid me in rebuilding the Hidden Sound Village in honor of your deceased father so that his legacy can rebuild the great Shinobi Nations into his utopia. You both are his descendants and both of you carry his genetics within you that are needed to birth the new nation."

"Go to hell…" Suzume growled.

"However,' he continued to speak blatantly ignoring her heated words, 'I know full well that neither you or Yoshiko would ever agree to being used as tools of breeding, well, at least Yoshiko would refuse, you on the other hand."

"Kabuto…"

The man chuckled in his smooth almost sensual voice. The underlined threat he heard within his name was more amusing than dangerous to him. He leaned forwards, lacing hands to his lap as he locked his eyes with hers. "If you agree to aid me in the repopulation of the Hidden Sound, I shall keep your beloved Zabuza alive so that he can also aid in the rebuilding of our coming Nation. I will offer the same to Yoshiko, yet she may have her pick of either Haku or Kimimaro, both of whom would make fine donors. Then there is Sasuke to consider as well. Of course, all three of those young Shinobi have fascinating Jutsu and Kekkei Genkai flowing within their veins. It would be a shame to only breed one of them with your sister."

Suzume glanced back towards Haku and Kimimaro. Neither had made a motion, a blink of an eye at Kabuto's words. From behind her, she heard a very dangerous growl from Zabuza. Was this a true offering? Kabuto would keep Zabuza alive if she agreed to his proposal? On the surface the offer sounded too good to pass up, yet she knew that every offer the genetic freak made came with a dangerous twist of lies and deception.

Smirking, she locked her eyes to Kabuto's reptilian orbs. "What's the catch?"

"Oh yes,' he mused slyly,' there always is a catch." He took a deep breath, cleared his throat then chuckled as the snake head slid up into view, and he stroked his fingers along the snake's head. "If you agree to my terms, I will allow you to keep Zabuza as your lover as long as you are capable of bearing his children to add to the new population. However, you can only keep him, and I will only sustain his life, if you agree to become my wife - my queen."

"No!" Zabuza bellowed.

"Over my dead body!" Suzume screamed at the same time.

Kabuto snarled at the defiance shown by both. He balled up a fist then brought it slamming down to the stone arm with such ferocity that the arm of the throne cracked. "That can be arranged!" he howled back then gathered his calm with a slow sigh. "I advise you to watch your tone, Suzume, or I will rip Zabuza apart, leaving no pieces left of his body for any Jutsu to bring back."

Tears welled within Suzume's beautiful black eyes. She took a defensive step back towards Zabuza.

The move didn't go unnoticed by Kabuto. He sighed softly, "I see. So you have made your choice."

When she saw Kabuto stand, she stuttered quickly, frantically, "I need time."

The man's eyes narrowed. "Oh?"

"I need time to think about this. I need to speak to Zabuza about this offer. After all, I'm sure he will have an opinion on the matter."

"You're damn right I do," snarled Zabuza under his dry breath.

Kabuto tipped his head to the left, narrowing his gaze from beneath the cowl of his hood. He knew that he had offered Suzume something very precious that she could not turn down, love. If she desired some time so she could ponder her options and even speak to Zabuza, who was he to deny such a request? After all, he still had full control of Zabuza, and if Suzume pressed the limits of his kindness, all he had to do was revert Zabuza back to a mindless and controlled corpse he truly was.

"Very well," Kabuto said with a nod. "I will give you one night to speak on this matter. I expect your answer in the morning. However, I warn you, think wise on your answer, my dear."

"Agreed,' Suzume also nodded then swept an arm out, pointing to both Haku and Kimimaro. "I also wish to speak to them and hear what they have to say on this matter. They both loved Yoshiko as much as she loved them. They would not want to see her harmed or upset in this scheme of yours. If you wish them to cooperate as well as Yoshiko, you'll need me to convince them."

Kabuto narrowed his eyes.

"Besides, you'll need to give up some control as you have done with Zabuza so I can speak to them. If you want Yoshiko to come back, you'll have to give her a reason. I can assure you that seeing these two Shinobi as nothing more than corpses would be an instant no."

"Which is why you will construct a letter asking to meet with her and then you can convince her to return."

Suzume laughed with a shake of her head. "My sister despises me. She will never agree to meet with me, not unless there is something of greater importance - an incentive to touch her heart."

Once again she motioned to the stoic and blank Haku and Kimimaro. "Release one of them to my control and I will write your letter and go to meet my sister. I'll also bring one of them with me so she can see what you are offering her. If Yoshiko sees that Haku or Kimimaro is alive before her, it will be easier to sway her to your side, and when she sees that both have been resurrected and are close to life, she will be convinced."

Kabuto slowly sat back down to the chair, leaning back and tapping fingers in contemplation. For a moment he considered Suzume's offer. Yoshiko would be extremely difficult to convince to return to the Hidden Sound, but she too was as vital to his plan as Suzume was. "Very well,' he said, and as Suzume was about to speak, he raised a finger to silence her, 'you can only decide upon one. I'll let you speak to them both, but only one shall go with you. I want your decision and your letter to Yoshiko prepared by morning, do you understand me?"

Reluctantly Suzume nodded. "Yes, I understand."

"Good." He waved a dismissive hand in her direction. "Now leave."

"But what about…"

"No worries, my dear. Zabuza will join you tonight, but first he and I must speak, then I will release the Jutsu holding Haku and Kimimaro. When I am done with them, you can speak to both. Now go."

She hated the fact that this bastard considered himself so high up on the damn power chain that he could order her around. If her father saw this, he would skin Kabuto alive with his own hands. A sly, pleased smile took her lips upon that thought, and image, for she knew that her father was slowly regenerating within Kabuto's body. It was only a matter of time till her father would strike and devour Kabuto whole.

"Very well." Suzume went to move only to stop. Her eyes slid to Zabuza and in her next thought she was pressed intimately against him, and though he didn't move towards her, she arched to him, cupping his handsome features within her hands and sealing her mouth to his.

The Shinobi groaned to the kiss. His eyes closed as he tasted pure heaven once more, yet to his displeasure the kiss did not last. Suzume was drawing away from him far too soon, offering him a soft smile before she turned to walk away. The entire conversation he had just been witness to enraged him. He had no idea that Suzume was Orochimaru's daughter, and though she did look different, she was still the woman he had loved. Angered eyes turned towards Kabuto as he heard the man standing and walk forwards.

When Zabuza looked back, he saw that Kabuto trembling in rage. He smirked to himself. So the little freak was in love with Suzume? Knowing his lover, there was no way in hell that she would ever agree to this proposal, even if it would cost them both his resurrected life. When Kabuto motioned him forwards, Zabuza tried to fight the order, but the Jutsu forced him to move. A low growl slid from his throat, and every murderous thought tumbled about within his mind. To his pleasure, he saw Kabuto's eyes flinch and wondered if the man could see Zabuza's thoughts, and Kabuto's own death.

**S**uzume waited impatiently within her room for three hours, alone, going through moods of panic, fear and excitement. Zabuza was alive, well, to a degree. He had been resurrected by a Jutsu, and though seeing him was more pleasing than anything since her father's murder, knowing he was to be used as a tool of war without his own control was utterly terrifying.

She sat upon her bed with fingers ringing within the hem of her skirt. She hadn't bothered to change. From the moment she entered her room and sat down was the moment she seemed to be lost in time. Not once did her eyes move from the floor where she was staring at the old cracks in the stone. A few times she would look at her bare toes wiggling nervously from the opening of her open toed shoes, but then her mind would go blank once again, disappearing within her uneasy thoughts.

She took an unsteady, quivering breath as her eyes closed beneath fluttering lashes. How long has she been waiting? Kabuto said that Zabuza would come to her this night, but waiting for him was nearly killing her.

Suddenly there was a sound outside the door, footsteps.

Suzume raised her eyes as excitement raced through her with such intensity that she found her body quivering.

"Suzume?"

That was Zabuza's voice!

Now she moved! Suzume's body sprang up, and she almost tripped as she rushed to the door. The moment the door was thrown open, she threw her arms about Zabuza's powerful shoulders, pulling him into her arms. She threaded fingers into his hair, yanking him down to her so she could seal her mouth to his in a kiss that was blinding.

Zabuza growled to the kiss, to her taste. He grasped her by the hips, spun her around and drove her against the wall, wasting no time in assaulting her mouth with his.

She hissed as her back hit the hard wall, yet moaned as her recently dead lover took command of their heated embrace. Suzume scratched her nails down the back of his neck, drawing a deep growl of pleasure from him till she buried her fingers against the thick cloak he wore. It was a drive deep within her that urged her to attack him, surging forth with lust filled desire. Suzume choked back a sob when the kiss was broken and she felt Zabuza's cool lips skimming down her throat to leave a path of nipped skin. She moaned, arching her throat with her body pressing to him in wanton need as his hands released her hips to trail along her sides.

Her body was shaking, trembling by the sensation of his hands and his touches that she had missed and dreamed about for years. Tears tumbled down her cheeks to the glorious feeling of Zabuza's hard body against her, and she nearly cried out his name when he mumbled her name against her throat in a spill of cool breath against her flesh.

Perhaps it was the little whimper that broke Zabuza's clouded mind or maybe it was the sudden taste of salty tears that had him pausing in his pleasurable attention. Either way, he paused in his kisses to lift his gaze. Suzume was crying. She was trembling. Sighing, the Demon of the Hidden Mist took a deep breath, closed his eyes and leaned his forehead to hers.

"I never thought I would see you again," he whispered mournfully as he brought a hand up to brush fingers along a damp cheek. "I'm not a man who apologizes, Suzume." Zabuza paused as he took a deep breath of her sweet scent. "I didn't mean to leave you like I did, vanishing without a word to you."

With a shaking hand, she ran fingers through his spikey hair of dark brown. Everything about him was alive and with every passing minute the smell of death was leaving him. Though his body held coolness, she could feel the life pumping through his veins. "It's okay,' she whispered, tipping her head to kiss his cheek then his forehead, 'there's nothing that can be done, my love. You're here with me now. You're alive."

The man grunted at her last comment. Shaking his head, he drew back just enough to look to Suzume's beautiful features. "I'm not alive like I once was. Being brought back by some fucking Jutsu is not living, Suzume. Kabuto controls me. Even now I can hear his commands whispering in my head."

He chuckled then groaned. "It's not very pleasant."

"I'm sorry,' Suzume whispered, trailing a fingertip along her lover's lips that parted to kiss her finger, 'this is not how I wanted to be reunited with you."

Zabuza smirked. His lips pulled back to expose a sharp grin. "How'd you expect to be reunited with me? I've been dead, Suzume."

Even she chuckled to his morbid sense of humor. "I mean reunited in soul."

"That'd be impossible,' Zabuza spoke softly, kissing the tip of her chin, 'I'm in Hell. That's no place your soul would ever go."

A frown creased her features at his words. She took a breath. "You'd be surprised just how dark my soul has become." Gently, she cup her lover's features with finger skimming along his cool jaw. "I've done a lot of bad things since your death, things I am not proud of. But I've done them none-the-less. And this is one of my punishments. I'm stuck with Kabuto because he holds the last remnants of my father in him, and in time, my father will take him over and be regenerated."

He sighed with a slight scowl upon his lips. "I never thought once you were Orochimaru's daughter. I didn't know the freak had any children."

Suzume arched a brow to the reference made of her father.

He didn't care; he'd call anybody anything he wanted. And one had to admit that Orochimaru was once one of the world's greatest freaks, even if the man had been one of the Great Sannin. "I knew you were using a Jutsu to hide your true identity from me…"

"You did?" she asked, surprised that he would confess such a revelation now.

"Yes,' he nodded, leaning even further against her so he could skim the tip of his nose along her neck, drawing a little purr of delight from her, 'I knew that Yoshiko was your sister, not you ward."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Oh Heaven, how she missed his touch.

Zabuza brushed his lips to the shell of her ear, and his hands trailed slowly along her form remembering every dip and curve that created her luscious body. "It wasn't the time," he replied, pressing a kiss to her soft cheek before he drew back. "I knew your mission had nothing to do with watching my interactions with Gato, so why should I care who you were spying on?"

"I wasn't spying on anybody," acknowledge Suzume, skipping her fingers up along the folds of the cloak. Her eyes lowered so she could watch her fingers fiddle with the zipper of the cloak.

"Then what were you doing with me all that time?"

Shy dark eyes peeked upwards past a fallen lock of ebony, and the softest of smiles graced her lips as she looked up to the man she loved more than her own father. "I was training Yoshiko. Our father wished her to experience the world, so when I met you that day in the woods things fell into place. There was no real reason for us to be there, but then I fell in love with you."

Zabuza's lips curled to a sly grin. He slid fingers up to cup the back of her neck so he could guide her head back. He took his time exploring her throat with his tongue and lips, bathing in the lovely sounds of her moans and whimpers. Could this be Heaven or was this truly just a momentary torture in his personal Hell? To feel her body arching and pressing wantonly to him sent waves of heated desire right through him. All Zabuza wished to do was rip every inch of fabric from her body, throw her to her bed and fuck her all night - till she screamed out his name for Kabuto to hear.

But not yet…

Growling, Zabuza drew himself away. He had not forgotten that he had a message to deliver to her. The man nearly whimpered as he pressed his swollen and painfully aching need against his lover.

Suzume was panting, her breath hitching in her throat as she grasped and pressed against him. When he drew back, she frowned hearing him growl. "What's wrong?" she groaned in trembling desire.

Zabuza growled out his answer, "Kabuto has a message for you. You're to go and speak to Haku and Kimimaro."

"What?!" Suzume snapped loud enough that Zabuza winced. "Now?"

"Damn, woman!" he barked, pulling away to rub at his ear. He glared at her. "I'm only the controlled messenger, so don't scream in my ear."

"Sorry," she whimpered with an apologetic smile as she touched his hand, then groaned and leaned her head back with a slight bang to the stone wall. "This sucks. The little shit's only doing this because he knows what I want to do with you and to you. I could speak to those two later."

Zabuza let his lips coil to a grin. "He wants you, badly, can't say I blame him." Leaning back to her, he ground his swollen shaft against her him, giving her a feel of his throbbing desire. "I'd rather keep you here and make you scream." He breathed against her neck with a hot whisper, "I've missed the way you scream my name as you come for me."

Such hot words, provocative and erotic. Suzume purred seductive as she skimmed a hand between their bodies to cup his swollen shaft to which she gave a long stroke and dipped her head to trail her tongue along his ear. "I'd rather stay here too,' she whispered to him, enjoying the hard shudder that raced along him and the deep, prolonged groan as she squeezed him, 'but I have a feeling that Kabuto won't like me blowing him off for an early fuck session."

"No,' Zabuza hissed as he rocked his hips towards her devious hand, 'the kid just wants you to blow him. But even if he holds control over me, I'd find a way to rip off his limp, little dick and shove it down his throat."

Suzume laughed brightly to the threat she knew her lover would gladly carry out. She gave him one last stroke then drew her hand away. She kissed his lips softly, twice, before giving him a push to his shoulders. "I don't want to give him any reason to take you away from me too early." She pressed a kiss to his cheek then slipped away from the wall.

Zabuza groaned, leaning his forehead to the cool stone wall. From the corner of his eyes, he watched his lover adjust the slender dress that cuddled her form oh so right. Just imagining the skirt pulled up her hips and his body buried into her had him trembling on the verge of lost control.

She felt pity for him, seeing his body straining under the long cloak. She stepped to him, leaning to touch a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I won't be long. Wait here for me."

Zabuza tipped his head and give his lover a slight grin. "Where the hell would I go, back to the grave?"

"That's not funny," Suzume whispered as a shadowed frown creased her lips.

"Exactly." He jerked his chin towards the door. "You better go. He's sent Haku to your sister's room. The other kid's in his own room."

With a nod and one last kiss to his cheek, Suzume departed her room. As the door closed behind her, she made a solid promise that she would see Kabuto suffer for his crimes against her heart, suffer with the pain of his own being torn from his rotten chest.

Pain - the thought of it made her smile.

21


	2. Broken

Return My Heart S Lazic

**Return My Heart**

~ A Naruto Shippuden Fanfiction ~

Follows Lover of the Mist

**II**

(Warning: Adult / mature situations & language within story. 18+. This story and the concept are copy-righted to S. Lazic. The original concepts and characters are credited to the creator of the Naruto / Naruto Shippuden Universe. )

**S**uzume walked quickly through the empty hallways of the underground compound towards Yoshiko's old room. Why would Kabuto assign Haku that room, why not Kimimaro? Then again, why the hell was Kabuto doing all of this in the first place? He was up to something, but what, she couldn't tell.

Was he planning to use Haku and Kimimaro against each other? That could be a possibility. After all, Suzume had known for many years that Kabuto had held some resentment towards Kimimaro for the devotion and loyalty that Sound Shinobi had held towards Orochimaru. Also, Kimimaro had been selected to be Orochimaru's vessel while waiting for Sasuke, and in a way, that position made him more important to Orochimaru than Kabuto's position. But that opportunity had failed as Kimimaro's illness had suddenly advanced during the attack on Konoha, and to the point where the strain upon his system had caused his premature death.

But that had been expected. For months after the attack, Kimimaro had been slowly dying, kept alive by Kabuto on Orochimaru's orders.

Both Kabuto and Kimimaro had held Orochimaru in high regards, one as his Master the other as a twisted God. They both desired Orochimaru's attention and recognition. Even though Kabuto and Kimimaro played their separate roles in her father's world well, Kabuto retained a silent hatred for Kimimaro.

In the past, there had been a few times when Yoshiko had whispered her concerns to her older sister, exposing her fears that Kabuto may be causing Kimimaro's degenerative illness to accelerate, yet she had no proof of this accusation. Even after Kimimaro's death Yoshiko tried to convince her father that Kabuto had been killing Kimimaro, her friend, with poison while caring for him. Her concerns always fell on silent ears for Orochimaru had been far too enwrapped within his own desires and with Sasuke to even bother with the worries of his youngest child. He pushed Yoshiko away, dismissing her and her feelings rather than listening.

There was a good chance, a strong chance, that Yoshiko had been correct. Kabuto could never be trusted.

Never.

Finally, she came to Yoshiko's room and to the door that had been locked since Sosuke had seen to Yoshiko's departure. To be placed in Yoshiko's room must be torment to poor Haku, a soul who had been thrown into the Shinobi world by force.

Shaking her head and the depressive thoughts away, Suzume knocked upon the door.

"Come in."

Cautiously, Suzume opened the door then stepped inward to the large yet simple room, and there he sat upon the edge of Yoshiko's bed with his hands in his lap. He was holding a picture frame, and his effeminate fingers trailed the edge with a delicate touch.

"Haku?" she asked softly, not wanting to jolt his attention.

"She's so beautiful."

Suzume tipped her head with a slight frown touching her lips. "Hmm?"

Haku lifted his gaze, and like Zabuza's eyes, his were all black with a gentle ring of copper. He too had been released from the Jutsu and was in control of himself, or so it seemed upon the surface. But Suzume wondered just who was pulling the strings of these puppets and how far Kabuto's influence went. Could he see out of their eyes? Could he hear out of their ears?

Haku raised the picture frame that held a picture of Yoshiko sitting within a stream of sunshine. His didn't smile, simply looked back to the photo with a blank stare. "I don't understand what's going on. This isn't the Yoshiko I remember."

"No,' Suzume said softly, moving warily to sit at his side, 'she's a few years older now. She just turned eighteen in that picture, she's no longer a child."

Those words drew an even deeper frown to his lips. "I'm nothing. I'm just a reanimated corpse, and she's a beautiful young woman."

"Is that what Kabuto told you?" she asked with a snarl to her voice.

"He's told me everything."

"Everything?"

Haku nodded somberly. "Yes. He told me that Yoshiko is Orochimaru's daughter, but I knew that already. I knew that a long time ago."

Suzume frowned with a dry sigh. "I see."

"He told me about Kimimaro as well."

Suzume's frown deepened. "What did he tell you about Kimimaro?"

"That he was Yoshiko's guardian while under the care of her father, and that they were friends, even before we met. He said that after my death they became closer than friends."

"Closer?"

Haku sighed a sigh of deep regret. "He said that they have been lovers before Kimimaro's own death."

"Lovers?" Suzume barked out a laugh. "Are you kidding? Kabuto said that?" She threw up her arms. "Of course he would!"

Haku blinked, tipping his head as he watched her angered expression. "They were not?"

"Of course not," Suzume laughed with a shake of her head. "Haku, don't listen to Kabuto. He's purposefully spread false truths so he can take what little happiness is left of his crumbling reality out on those less fortunate than him, those he now controls. And right now, as sad as it is, you and Kimimaro are on his list of toys to screw with. Yoshiko and Kimimaro were never more than close friends. I think she may have had some feelings for him, but he was never capable of holding deep feelings for her. He was too emotionally involved with my father than seeing Yoshiko as anything more than Orochimaru's daughter."

Haku nodded. He looked back to the picture and ran a finger over the image of Yoshiko smiling back to him. "I still love her," he whispered softly as a look of heart felt pain shadowed his features. "I never stopped loving her."

Suzume felt her heart twist within her chest, aching upon hearing his words. She reached up, running fingers through Haku's long, rich brown hair. "She's never stopped loving you, Haku."

The youth blinked his eyes, then slowly turned to look to her. "Really?"

Suzume nodded, and replied with a smile, "She never stopped speaking of you. She went back to your grave to bring you fresh flowers as often as she could. When we departed the Land of Waves, she brought your headband with her. She took it with her when she left."

"She left?"

"Yes. After Sasuke Uchiha killed our father, he escorted her as close as he could to the Land of Fire, to Konohagakure, so she could return to her father, her real father."

Haku's eyes narrowed. "But Orochimaru is her father."

Suzume shook her head. "No. Though we shared the same mother, our fathers were different. Though Orochimaru insisted that she was his father, and till recently, she believed him."

"I don't understand."

"It's not important."

Haku looked away. "Is she safe?"

Suzume nodded.

"Then that is all that matters."

"I know this is hard for you, Haku…"

"No,' he said with a slight bite to his voice, 'you have no idea how difficult this is for me, being brought back from death by a Jutsu, unable to control my thoughts or my actions. This is Hell for me." Haku raised his gently eyes that now held a shadow of anger.

"I died almost four years ago. I followed Zabuza into a battle we thought we could win, and I sacrificed my life for him, and in doing so I threw away the one person who truly loved me. I sacrificed my life to save Zabuza, yet it was her I last thought about when I took my final breath." Haku sighed, a breath of stale air. "And now I'm back, but I'm not the same kid I was before my death. I haven't been reborn at fifteen again, I'm nineteen now. I doesn't make sense, how I could have aged when dead."

He looked to her and asked softly, "She won't accept me like this. She will despise me because I am nothing more than a rotting corpse."

"No she won't. Don't underestimate Yoshiko's love for you, Haku." Suzume reached to take the photo from his hands, then she took his handsome, young features in her hands. "I can't express how angry I am at Kabuto for doing this. I am repulsed that he would use my father's Jutsu to bring not only you back to life, but Zabuza, Kimimaro and the others."

"Kabuto is a Shinobi, albeit one that has let his dreams become clouded by the allure of power,' Haku said in his quiet, gentle voice that had lost the feminine touch that it had held when he was younger, 'I know that. I was a Shinobi, the power that can come with our goals and our battles can be overwhelming. Kabuto speaks lies, and he has whispered those lies to us through the Jutsu. He'll use us to whatever degree he wants, including sacrificing us."

"I don't want to think about that."

Haku shrugged his shoulders as he pulled from her grasp. "There's no way around it. We're all going to die - again. This momentary life is not a life, and it is only temporary."

"Then live this one chance, Haku. Kabuto is allowing me to take either you or Kimimaro to meet with Yoshiko in hopes of luring her back to him."

"No!" Haku snapped, turning enraged eyes to Suzume. He saw the woman flinch beneath his dangerous gaze. "I know what his intentions are, and I won't be used in such a way! I won't break Yoshiko's heart, nor will I allow anybody to enslave her to their twisted schemes."

"I didn't say that," Suzume whispered reaching a hand forwards to touch his arm. "Let me finish, alright? I know you would never agree to Kabuto's game. I know that Kabuto won't keep to his promises. But know this. He won't survive this war. My father is slowly taking over him, but in truth, he's facing a greater challenge against the Shinobi Nations. One man and a small army of resurrected Shinobi against an army of thousands upon thousands of ninja? Kabuto's delusional."

"There are more of us. You only saw the ones Kabuto wanted you to see. Kabuto has resurrected the most dangerous S-class criminals, the most powerful Kage and all of the deceased Jinjuriki. He has control over all of their Jutsu and their Kekkei Genkai. He will not be defeated."

Suzume felt her heart sink into her chest. After a moment, she forced a smile to her lips and said, "So take this chance and have one night with Yoshiko."

"One night?" Haku furrowed his brows. "I don't understand."

"I am to choose between you and Kimimaro. I will not bring Kimimaro with me to meet with Yoshiko. I will bring you."

Haku's eyes narrowed. "I told you, no."

"Yes, and I understand why. But I also know that you will be able to talk her out of any stupidity."

"Kabuto will control my thoughts, my words to her."

"But not your heart. Yoshiko will see through everything because she knows your love and she knows the truth in your heart." She gently touched his arm. "You'll have one night with her. Kabuto hopes that you'll use that time to convince her to side with him, but you don't have to do that. If you say that you are going to die anyway, why not take the moment to tell Yoshiko how much you love her, show her how much you love her."

When Haku turned away, she gently took hold of his chin to turn his black gaze back to her. "Let me ask you this. If you had not died, where do you think your relationship with Yoshiko would be now?"

Haku's eyes softened. "I honestly don't know."

"Would you still be with her? Or would you have let her go? Would you have let her walk out of your friendship or would you have followed her into the clutches of my father to be with her?"

When he turned his gaze away, Suzume asked, "Would you have fallen in love with her? Would you and Yoshiko become…lovers?"

Lovers? The word snapped Haku's eyes to Suzume, wide and shining with fright. "Lovers?"

Suzume nodded. "She's has never loved any more than you, and I know by fact, that if given the chance, she would have given herself to you in heart and body when the time came. So take this chance and have one night with her, one night to seal the love that you two still hold for each other. I know my sister. Even if you die and she refuses to return to Kabuto, she would rather have one night spent with you, the man she loves, than have no chance to being with you for the rest of her life."

He snarled, "That sounds cruel."

"It's not." She touched his cool cheek when he looked away from her. "It's what she would want. All I need to do is write her a letter asking her to meet me. Then you and I will go and meet her."

"Even if she does agree to meet us, I won't allow her to fall for Kabuto's promise of keeping me alive."

Suzume gave a nod. "I can respect that."

"I would rather have my mind controlled by him than watch him torment her." Haku snarled as his fingers clenched. "I know what he intends to use her for. Even in our controlled state, we can hear his thoughts. I won't let him touch her. I won't let him…"

"Then come with me and meet her, Haku. One night and you two can be together. You can finally claim her as yours."

"Then what?"

"That's for both of you to decide upon."

"What about Kimimaro?"

"Don't worry about him, just focus upon Yoshiko." Suzume reached out taking his hands in hers. "Haku, Yoshiko would give anything to have one moment with you again. After all she's been through she needs to see you. This would be a blessing to her."

Haku frowned. His handsome features became shadowed with a look of concern, pain and longing. "Tell me what's happened to her. I want to know what Orochimaru's tried to do to her."

A frown danced along Suzume's features, and she released Haku's hands to look away with a heavy felt sigh. "Please don't judge her…or me. We didn't have a choice when it came to obeying our father. Sure, he was a lot more lenient and loving to us, if you can think of Orochimaru as loving, but he was still Orochimaru. He tolerated a lot of Yoshiko's rebellious attitudes and sarcastic comments, but even he drew a line that she often crossed."

Haku didn't like the direction of Suzume's statements. A cold rush of air swept across his skin causing him to shiver.

"My father has had one goal on his mind when it came to his daughters. It's no secret that my father used a Jutsu to keep himself alive. He takes over a host body then forms a type of outer skin, like a snake, to form an illusion that the body is actually his when it's not. Underneath the skin is the host body and appearance. The skin can be damaged but can always be repaired. My father somehow mixes the genetics of his host and his own."

She took a sigh, shaking her head with a slight frown. "He's spent almost his entire life perfecting this Jutsu, and many more. I'm not sure exactly how many host bodies he went through, but I know he spent countless hours searching for and abducting some of the most powerful Shinobi he could find. Once he got them, he would put them in a form of a trance and keep them locked away in a cell till they were needed, either as a host body or for experimentation."

"Experimentation…?"

Slowly Suzume skimmed her unique eyes to Haku. She nodded her head. "You don't want to know what he did to them." She looked away then sighed. Even she didn't want to think about the experiments her father and Kabuto had performed upon the poor souls they kept locked away. She could still remember the screams of terror and unimaginable pain echoing through the stone hallways that made up her father's underground compounds only to be followed by utter silence, the silence of death.

"My father's dream was to build his own Shinobi Nation that could become greater than Konoha. He wanted to build an army great enough to take down the Hidden Leaf, and a few times he tried with brilliant plans but they failed. He's even tried to take Naruto Uzumake."

"Naruto? That boy is still alive?" Haku tipped his head to his inner words as a slight little grin took his lips.

Waving a hand, Suzume took a deep breath. "I'm getting off subject here," she breathed out, then grunted with a shake of her head. "When it came to me and Yoshiko, my father spoiled us. We were even given the title of Princess. All under our father were ordered to obey us, protect us and serve us. I have to say that the power went right to my head, but Yoshiko didn't care for that treatment. She began to rebel, quickly, against the 'love' laced parenting my father bestowed upon us, especially when she got older. She wanted nothing to do with my father or his world while I would've done anything for him."

Suzume chuckled with a playful smirk. "I swear, that girl drove my father to the brink of insanity at times. However, a few times she pushed him to his limits."

Haku's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Did he hurt her?"

"What? No!" she laughed softly, waving her hands. "He never laid a hand on her. He'd only threaten her, and when my father threatened you, you didn't push any more of his buttons. She usually would run away in a huff so my father would have to send Kimimaro after her to talk her into returning."

Kimimaro? Haku groaned at the name. He remembered Kimimaro. They had met face to face upon the day that Zabuza and he were leaving Blood Mist Village, the Village Hidden in the Mist. Haku could remember Kimimaro's eyes, eyes that were the same eyes he had, lost, angered and hurt - the same eyes he had before meeting Zabuza.

Haku never imagined that Kimimaro would become a part of Yoshiko's life. Then again, he never imagined that he would die and then be brought back to life by some resurrection Jutsu. He sighed and looked once again to the picture in his hands.

"Kimimaro never hurt her, did he?" he asked in a voice that was quiet, reserved.

"No,' Suzume replied softly, 'like I said, they formed a unique bond. Even though Kimimaro idolized my father to an unhealthy obsession, he viewed Yoshiko as his responsibility to keep safe and to keep happy. He knew she wasn't happy being with us. He also knew that the world my father created and lived in wasn't the world Yoshiko wanted. In a way, he became a confidant to her. She confided much in him, even if he had no understanding of what it meant to care for somebody beyond Orochimaru."

"You said that Yoshiko's back in Konohagakure with the man she believes to be her true father, she has another family?"

"Oh, that's a long and complicated story." She frowned. "Basically, my father had an affair with a married woman, married to the man Yoshiko calls her natural father, and she gave birth to me and Yoshiko. Along the way, Orochimaru found me and lured me to him…' this time when Suzume went quiet, there was a look of sadness and deep regret written upon her features, and after a breath she continued on, 'I left Konoha to be with Orochimaru, and I took Yoshiko with me against her will."

Haku's features hardened instantly, his gaze becoming red-hot with anger as he snapped his eyes towards her. "You kidnapped your own sister?"

"You must understand,' she pleaded, looking to Haku with pain etched features, 'I was really young, and Yoshiko was just a girl, no more than five. I knew the man who raised us wasn't our true father. I mean, look at me!" She leaned back, sweeping her hands down the front of her. "I have Orochimaru's eyes, his pale skin and other features. I'd be stupid not to question the genetic connection to the man who raised us. Besides, our mother always whispered to me that one day we would be with our father and I was never too stupid not to figure out what she meant."

She shook her head with a grunt. "Konoha never meant anything to me. Deep down I knew I didn't belong to that place, or to that family. My father had always been calling to me, and when I entered the Shinobi academy and began training, his voice grew stronger each day my skills grew stronger. When I'd had enough of the whispers, I started my own investigation in the Konoha archives and found a photo of Orochimaru. You can believe the resemblance to be uncanny. By this time, our mother had passed away from an illness. Soon after, her body was stolen from the morgue by Orochimaru himself. It was soon after that Orochimaru found me one day. And after that, well,' she shrugged, 'it's history really. I took Yoshiko and left Konoha. We've been with Orochimaru ever since."

Haku continued to stare at Suzume in complete disgust over what he was hearing. He never would've guessed that Yoshiko had been forced into this life style. If he'd known that, he would've gotten her far away from this place, or even yet, taken her back to Konoha himself. But he had been young when living, and would not have been able to do anything for her.

"How could you keep your sister in this place and with a man like Orochimaru? Even when I was young I knew who he was. Zabuza told me stories of the twisted experiments Orochimaru performed and how he was listed as an S-rank criminal. If Yoshiko didn't want to be here, why not take her back?"

"And risk exposing my father?" Suzume balked at that idea. "I was always loyal to my father, and I believed deep down that Yoshiko would have a better life with us. It took her time, but eventually Orochimaru did form a bond with her. She did take to him as a father and for a long time she enjoyed being spoiled by him. But then she grew up, and became one hell of a sassy mouthed little Princess."

Haku smirked, and a glint of pride shadowed his eyes.

"When Yoshiko got older and began to notice that she really didn't seem to fit in, she began to question my father. He never held anything back from her. Orochimaru told her that he was our biological father and that our mother married the man who raised us, so when she passed away it was only right that his daughter be raised directly with him since we had been kept from him all this time."

"I guess because he was so open about the situation, Yoshiko couldn't form much anger against him,' she went on to say with a slight huff,' after all, I was the one who brought her here, not him. He never raised a hand to keep us here physically, and he never raised his voice to us or showed displeasure with us. He seemed to genuinely care for us and be content that we were in his life."

"I find it hard to believe that Orochimaru would show such care and devotion to any human, even if they are his own children."

If Haku only knew…

Suzume sighed as she glanced to him. Should she tell him of what Orochimaru had really planned for his daughters? Surely Kabuto would've told him that just to get a kick out of seeing Haku break. But if she did tell him, would that change his perception of Yoshiko? Suzume couldn't bear destroying the innocent love that her sister and Haku obviously still shared. But, if he was to find out anyway, wouldn't it be best that he hear the truth from her and not from Kabuto?

The decision was made.

"There is more that you should know,' she spoke timidly, drawing a questioned glance from Haku, 'but first you must promise not to judge Yoshiko for what I'm about to tell you."

"Judge her? Why would I ever judge her?"

Suzume sighed, looking down as she knitted her fingers together at her lap. "As with many of Orochimaru's actions, there was more to us being here with him than what was seen on the outside. There were no secrets to his intentions in using us, his followers and his Shinobi. Even Kimimaro knew what he had planned for Yoshiko and me. Nobody dared to stop him, nobody even cared. It was only to the fact that Yoshiko was still young that Orochimaru focused his full attention on me, especially after Zabuza's death. I was more acceptable, more excusable, because I was emotionally destroyed after Zabuza's death. At that time, I needed my father."

Haku's gaze narrowed once more in to an intense stare of anger. "What did he do to Yoshiko?"

"Nothing," Suzume answered as she kept her gaze locked firmly to her hands. "He was never given the chance, but that's not saying he didn't try."

"What did he do?"

"My father always wanted to preserve the bloodline of those Shinobi he had collected over the years that held special blood traits, Kekkei Genkai, especially those he would take on as his vessels. It would be foolish, he used to say, for him to allow such fine skills to be destroyed. So why not find a way to incorporate them into his new Nation. And the best way to do that is to breed new clans, breed new Shinobi. But in order to achieve his goals, he needed a way to breed the traits. Sure, he could try cloning or a specialized Jutsu but there was a lot of risk in doing such, so he did what came naturally in that instance."

She took a deep breath, fearing Haku's reaction. "To see that my father's dreams became real, I willingly gave myself to him."

Silence fell in the room, and Haku stared at Suzume in complete shock and disbelief. Had he heard her correctly? She gave herself to her own father?

She quickly raised a hand to stop Haku's spinning train of thought and said, "Before you even ask, it's not technically incest. The vessel my father had inhabited was never his, only the image on the outside. The physical body was always the host."

"Did he touch Yoshiko?" Haku asked in a voice that was tight, so very tight.

Suzume slowly shook her head. "No,' she answered in confirmation, 'but he had planned to, either by her willing submitting to his needs or by force. You see, oddly enough, I may look more to his side of the family but my sister harbors his incredible ability to master Jutsu as well as harboring my mother's Kekkei Genkai."

Haku blinked. "Kekkei Genkai? Yoshiko has a Kekkei Genkai?"

"Yes,' she nodded with a frown, 'it's an ability that is from a clan outside of Konoha, a non-Shinobi family - the family of my mother. My mother's family never allowed any of their members to wed or breed with a Shinobi for fear their Kekkei Genkai would be used for destruction."

"So how did Orochimaru gain two daughters from your mother?"

Suzume smirked, her body jerking as an amused snort bounced through her chest. "My mother hated that rule. She was always attracted to power, and powerful men. She knew of Orochimaru's ill-fated destiny and his Sannin title. She was instantly smitten with him, and he to her bloodline. Their affair was powerful and passionate. But unfortunately, their unions produced only one heir - me."

"What exactly is Yoshiko's Kekkei Genkai?" inquired Haku, cautiously and curiously.

"Immortality."

Haku blinked his eyes, shocked to what he was told. Confusion knitted his forehead, and he parted his lips to speak but Suzume held up a hand - silencing him. "I won't go into details, but just imagine what my father could do with an entire army of Shinobi all containing a genetic code for immortality. Yoshiko holds that key, that vital key that would give my father everlasting life. Think about that. And now realize that Kabuto is after the same."

"No," snarled Haku dangerously.

"No?"

He shook his head. "I won't allow it. I won't allow Kabuto to use me to bring Yoshiko back here so he can use her in the same despicable manner that your father had wanted. I'd rather die a second time, be tortured forever in Hell than allow her to be used in such a way."

"Haku…"

"Answer me one question." Suzume nodded to him. "Are you sure your father never touched her?"

"Yes. He wasn't a fool,' she told him, 'he wanted to wait till she was of legal age before he attempted to lure her into his plans as he had done me. After she lost you, Yoshiko had a hard time recovering. She didn't trust many, and she recused herself from life in general. My father had to be very careful how he approached her, how he persuaded her - forms her. But then Yoshiko had lost Kimimaro when he failed to bring Sasuke to our father. Kimimaro was close to killing the current Kazekage, who at that time was nothing but a Chunin. Kimimaro died right before he delivered the death blow to Gaara of the Desert and a Chunin from Konoha."

Haku tipped his head, a slight frown showing upon his lips. "How close were they?"

"His death struck Yoshiko really hard," Suzume replied, formulating her answer carefully to not destroy any credibility on her sister's part. "You see, he'd been very ill for some time and was close to death when he left the compound without instruction to see to Sasuke's safe arrival. He knew he was going to die, and Yoshiko went to stop him. She followed him the entire way and watched him die. It was after his death that her hatred for my father increased. She never spoke to him as her father again; she called him Orochimaru after that. She grew distant and even more so when our father placed Sasuke as her guardian as he had done with Kimimaro."

Sasuke. Haku sighed, the name bringing memories of his battle with the young Uchiha to the forefront. To know that kid had become Yoshiko's guardian pinched a nerve. He frowned, looking down to Yoshiko's picture. Had Sasuke taken this picture of her then? Was she smiling at him or Kimimaro?

"The point to this long story is that Yoshiko fought against my father every step of the way after she lost Kimimaro. I think she had a notion of what my father was planning for her. I mean, she knew what he and I were doing, and she despises me still for it. But that is water under the bridge now." Suzume turned to face Haku completely. She took the photo from his grasp then turned his young features to her. "She never would've let him touch her in that way, physically, intimately. And if he had used force on her, Yoshiko would've ended her own life before…"

"What?!" Haku snapped. "She never would consider that option, never!"

Suzume sighed, dropping her touch from his cheek. "I just want you to understand what she was up against. She was one girl against not only my father but those who believed in his work and would've done anything to see his goals achieved. Believe me, Orochimaru didn't want to force her, but as a last resort he'd do anything to gain her involvement."

Slowly, Haku shake his head. He couldn't stomach what he was hearing. His body went cold at the image of Orochimaru forcing himself upon Yoshiko, and he could do nothing to stop it.

"Sasuke wasn't blinded by some diluted image of loyalty to my father. He was after Orochimaru's powers, and that's all. When he found out what was planned for Yoshiko, he wasn't thrilled. The idea disturbed him, made him sick. And even though Sasuke didn't care for anybody but himself - ever - there was a building connection between him and Yoshiko. So when he killed my father, he saw that she was taken to safety."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because Kabuto will not hesitate to warp the relationship between Yoshiko and my father till the truth is nothing but a twisted and perverted lie, and he'll do so to taint your view of her - to break the bond you two have. I wanted you to know the truth so you wouldn't hate Yoshiko due to some distorted lie."

Haku sighed heavily, his eyes drifting closed as he allowed his mind to sort through all that Suzume had told him. "I would've taken her away from all of this - this horror," he finally stated in a voice that was hardly a whisper. "She didn't deserve to be left alone in this nightmare."

Suzume frowned, looking away from him.

"Once again, I can't do anything to help her. I'm going to end up dust and she'll be heart broken, emotionally brutalized by Kabuto's sick game. I can't leave her alone and vulnerable again."

Suzume's heart broke, and she reached over to brush back a lock of his brown hair that had tumbled across his cheek. "You don't know that, Haku."

"Yes,' he said, his body hunching forwards, 'I do. I'm not an idiot, nor am I a fool."

"Will you meet with her?"

"Like this, a walking corpse?" Haku raised his hands before his gaze only to realize that he was shaking slightly. "I don't want her to see me as…as this thing."

"She won't judge you, just as you would never judge her."

"But I'll judge myself. I can't hurt her."

Suzume sighed once more, then she stood up from the bed taking a few steps away then paused as she glanced back over her shoulder to Haku. "I think she'd hate you even more if you didn't go to her, given this chance, and give her the goodbye she has needed this entire time to have closure over your death. That's all she ever wanted from you."

"Think about it. I need your answer by sunrise."

Haku blinked his eyes, those soft brown eyes, as he felt Suzume's words reach deep into his heart. He felt pain swim through him and looked up just as the door to the bedroom closed, clicking softly. He couldn't imagine how Yoshiko must've felt waking up that fateful morning to find him gone and without a goodbye. There had been so much he had wanted to tell her that night he found her on the roof of Zabuza's hide-out and when he confessed he knew her secret. But Fate stepped in.

And now he had a chance to tell her how much he had, and still, loved her. How much he regrets not telling her sooner, but his young age had kept him from speaking such mature words. Yoshiko deserves to hear from his own mouth, with his own voice, that she still is his world - his heart.

15


End file.
